James Mangold's “LOGAN”
Movie review by Dennis D. McDonald
A young mutant goes on a road trip with The Wolverine and Xavier.
LOGAN puts most other Marvel movies to shame with its drama, character development, and gritty action sequences. There are no third-act city-leveling CGI-heavy pyrotechnics and very little of the sarcastic snark and banter we've come to expect from the Marvel universe.
Instead we get a serious portrayal of what happens in the year 2029 when an aging Wolverine, now caring for a mentally declining elderly Professor Xavier, is visited by young mutant at a time when mutants have for the most part been railroaded into extinction.
The movie traces the adventures of Logan, Xavier, and the young mutant. Relationships among the three evolve in expected directions as the road trip progresses and as the group is pursued by the bad guys intent on recapturing the young one.
As the story arc plays out we are treated to some affecting and emotionally engaging character development. Jackman and Stewart are great as always. It is Dafne King as the young mutant who really shines as she (literally) flips back and forth between girlhood and a terrifyingly weaponized killing machine.
The action sequences are superbly choreographed with some of the best integrated live-action and CGI sequences I've seen. They put the more traditional wire-work-enabled fights in older Chinese swordplay action films to shame.
But the characters are the thing here. If you can tolerate the phenomenal level of violence you as the viewer will be richly rewarded. Recommended.
Review copyright (c) 2017 by Dennis D. McDonald
An edited and update version of this review has been published by aNewDomain.
